In the south of Tunisia, fishermen regularly rescue boats full of migrants that are in distress. For them, coming across an overloaded boat has become part of their daily “routine”, just like finding dead bodies floating in the water.
When the fishermen encounter a group of migrants in difficulty in the water, they alert the Tunisian authorities. The latter proceed with the rescue if a coast guard vessel is nearby. If not, it is up to the fishermen to assist the migrants. Some have been trained in sea rescue by Doctors Without Borders (MSF) to avoid tragedies and ensure the safety of the shipwrecked.
MSF did not prepare the fishermen for confrontations with the Libyan coast guard however. Tunisian authorities allow their Libyan counterparts to enter their waters to intercept migrant boats. Since a 2016 agreement with the European Union, Tripoli has been responsible for part of the search and rescue zone (SAR zone) near its coast. This has caused huge upset for Tunisian fishermen, who say they receive constant pressure from “Libyan militias.”
The Tunisians juggle as best they can between rescues, threats from neighboring coastguards, and their industry, which has become less profitable as the number of rescues at sea increases.
Read more:
https://www.infomigrants.net/en/post/36431/tunisian-fishermen-have-become-accidental-migrant-rescuers